We had the good fortune of connecting with Nicole Salcedo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nicole, so before we jump into specifics about your story and work, let’s start higher level. What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
One of the most important lessons I have learned is to always be open to facing and learning about yourself and your habits. Practice not taking things personally, and not taking things for granted. Forgiveness is the best gift you can give yourself and others. Befriend uncertainty and chaos. Find a way to ground yourself and clear your mind in the mornings, everyone’s mind/body/spirit is unique in what works for them. I personally like to sit in silence for 30 minutes some mornings, and other mornings I’ll dance for 30 minutes, or both if I wake up early enough. And last but not least, opportunities have a time limit.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Being a self-employed artist, my life consists of a lot of day to day things to check and manage: projects, invoices, connecting with potential clients, posting to social media and so on. What keeps me inspired and motivated creatively, is a constant desire to learn and grow as a human. I consider myself a student of life and my practice is rooted in spiritual growth, and cultivating my relationship with the evolutionary force of life.

So along with actual art making, I love reading, researching and listening to different teachers and philosophers. I love reading and watching fantasy based material, especially if its animated. What I mainly do pretty much everyday, is commune with other beings such as plants, rocks and water, they have a lot to teach us as well.

Any great local spots you’d like to shoutout?
I always take friends to Virginia Key on Key Biscayne, it’s also where I filmed my first and latest piece Eukaryotic. One place I like to eat in particular is El Bajareque. It’s this little family owned Puerto Rican spot located near my studio at the Bakehouse Art Complex, and they make THE BEST “pollo a la plancha” and chicken soup.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to dedicate this shout out to my high school, Design and Architecture Senior High and the teachers I had while I was there. That place really put me on track to becoming the person I am today.

Website: nicole-salcedo.com
Instagram: @chachichinikki
Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/nicole-salcedo

Image Credits
James Jackman, Olive and West, Nicole Mijares